UAE Aims for Emirati Astronaut to Land on Moon in 10 Yrs
- Publish date: Wednesday، 12 February 2025
UAE aims to land an Emirati astronaut on the Moon in the next 10 years, said the chief of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
The Director General of the centre, Salem Al Marri, said, "What drives me, and I think drives a lot of people at the MBRSC, is that we want to see an Emirati on the surface of the Moon within the next 10 years."
He also said, "And I think we will do everything that we can to make sure that happens.”
The UAE has signed up with NASA to contribute a key component of the US-led Gateway, a Moon-orbiting station, in exchange for sending an Emirati astronaut to the station.
However, the agreement only guarantees the country access to the station and a separate deal would have to be made to send an Emirati astronaut to the moon.
In 2019, Emirati astronaut Hazza Al Mansouri became the first Emirati astronaut to venture into space.
Dr. Sultan Al Neyadi became the first Arab to carry out a long duration journey through space and the first Arab to perform the spacewalk in 2023.
